BBC to launch companion experience for next series of Antiques Roadshow

The BBC will launch a “guess the value” companion experience for the next series of Antiques Roadshow in September, enabling audiences to play along with the programme on their PC, tablet, mobile, or via BBC Red Button.

The companion experience, which can be enjoyed alongside the live broadcast or on demand, offers the audience the opportunity to play at expert or amateur level and choose from four value ranges for each antique item featured on the show. Audiences make their valuation against the clock, before the answer is revealed on the TV.

On PC, tablet and mobile, viewers who need help in their valuation can see what others playing along are estimating using the ‘Ask the Nation’ function. At the end of each episode, audiences receive their final score, and find out how they ranked compared to the others taking part in the experience.

The companion experience also invites audiences to explore featured antiques in the programme and the historical stories that lie behind them, with content and onward journeys crafted by Roadshow experts and the BBC production team. Audiences can enjoy this content while they watch, or ‘Favourite’ it for exploring later.

This is the BBC’s first public launch of a companion screen experience, after closed trials conducted around Secret Fortune and Frozen Planet.

Victoria Jaye, BBC Head of IPTV and TV Online Content, said: “Antiques Roadshow is a perfect series to develop a companion experience around. We’re tapping into existing audience behaviour – viewers have been shouting at their TV screens for years, guessing the value of items featured in the programme. We’re also taking viewers on a journey beyond where the broadcast programme can go, providing in-depth content about the stories and the history behind featured antiques in the programme, drawn from across BBC Online and other trusted sources. It’s a great example of how we can creatively renew our audiences’ enjoyment of watching a much cherished BBC programme.”

Simon Shaw, Executive Producer, Antiques Roadshow, said: “We’re delighted to welcome the companion screen experience to The Antiques Roadshow. Our viewers love the rich mix of stories, surprise and learning from our team of experts. Now they’ll be able to really test their skills at playing the valuation guessing game and seeing how well they do against the rest of the nation.”